Gary Ribbink

General Manager

NE and Central Regions - A.A. in Engineering, Seminole State College of Florida. 35 years' experience.

Gary oversees the Sanford, Winter Garden, and Jacksonville offices. He started here as a Field Biologist and maintained this position for three years. He was then promoted to Sales Manager for seven years. Currently, he is a General Manager and has been 23 plus years.

Gary was born-and-raised in Dayton, Ohio. In 1972, he enlisted in the United States Navy. In the Navy, he worked as Radiation Worker and Nuclear Power Plant operator on nuclear submarines. He then worked his way up to Engine Room Supervisor as a Machinist Mate and 2nd Class Petty Officer. These positions involved water chemistry training, testing, and control. He served and qualified in Fast Attack and Fleet Ballistic Missile Nuclear Submarines. After six years in the Navy, he was honorably discharged. He then moved to Florida and worked in various jobs, one including Water Plant Operator for the City of Deerfield Beach. In 1983, he started working here while pursuing an Associates of Arts degree. He then received his Associates of Arts degree from Seminole Community College. He designed and built the e-boat his offices use. The e-boats reduce operator stress and eliminate gasoline emissions.

Gary is passionate about resolving lake problems. He wants his customers to know he does not quit, and will not give up on anyone’s lake.

As Sales Manager, his job involves sales and operations for the Greater Orlando area and the central East Coast of Florida. He has worked for us for 11 years. His first four years with the company were spent as an Aquatic Technician.

He was very interested in a job he saw advertised with our company because it was environmentally-based. Oliver was born-and-raised in Rutland, England.

Oliver loves that his job revolves around preserving and restoring Florida’s water systems. He strives to provide the best customer service in his area and relishes the opportunity educate, inform and exchange thoughts with colleagues and customers.

Jessica Jones

Account Representative

Sanford - B.S. in Biology, University of Central Florida. Two years' experience.

Jessica earned a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Central Florida.

As an Account Rep, her position with us provides customer service and performs quality checks to ensure lakes meet customer standards. She has been with the company for a little over one year.

Jessica was born-and-raised in south Florida. While in school, she interned for Jungle Adventures, a zoo where she worked with over 150 alligators. Before working here, Jessica worked for Mills Creek Environmental, where she was employed as an Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) Phase 1 site inspector. She was responsible for identifying environmental contaminants on commercial properties, fields, warehouses, and more. She loves getting to work outside on the job.

Josh Taylor

Service Manager

Josh has a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Central Florida. In addition, he successfully completed the USCS/USAMT Airboat Operator Certification Course. He started working as an Aquatic Technician in 2006 and has moved up since then. He has been with us for more than 10 years.

He is responsible for ensuring customers are receiving quality site and water quality testing services.

Josh said he is most passionate about making sure the needs of his customers are taken care of.

Josh was born-and-raised in Central Florida.

Alan Wilson

Service Manager

Alan has a Bachelor’s degree in Cell and Molecular Biology with a minor in Fisheries and Allied Aquaculture from Auburn University. His position as a Technician/Biologist was his first job out of college.

Alan is in charge of many different responsibilities in the Winter Garden office. He manages the day-to-day operations, handles service requests, and answers questions relating to the company. He’s been here for more three years, starting in 2013 as a Technician/Biologist in the Pompano office. In 2014, he was promoted to Service Manager at the Fort Pierce office. In 2015, he became the Service Manager for the Winter Garden office, which had just opened.

Alan was born-and-raised in Jupiter, Florida. He enjoys the opportunity to work outside with different species of wildlife.

Alan helps to preserve the environment by preventing the spread of invasive aquatic plants so native flora can flourish.

David Cottrell

District Manager

David holds a Bachelor’s degree in Botany from the University of Florida. He is also Green Industries Best Management Practices (GI-BMP) certified. He heads the Jacksonville division and is responsible for managing all sales and service operations in his division. Hired in 1997 as an Aquatic Weed Biologist, he was soon promoted to Sales Manager, and two years following that David was promoted to District Manager.

David was born-and-raised in Fernandina Beach, FL. Before starting here, David worked at Amelia Island Plantation, a resort in his home town, taking care of plants and preparing them aesthetically for corporate events and weddings. His education and work at the resort focused on plants, but he was lacking experience with aquatic plants. One day as he was looking through the newspaper, he found an ad from our company looking for an Aquatic Weed Biologist to which he applied and was hired.

David’s favorite part of his job is ensuring customers receive the best quality service and that their lake management needs are taken care of expertly. He ensures his staff guides customers to proper testing and makes recommendations to reduce herbicide use and find long-term solutions.

Katie Cabanillas

Sales Manager

Katie attended Berry College in Rome, Georgia and received her bachelor’s degree in environmental science with a concentration in Biology. Her program consisted of education on aquatic biology and environmental impacts.

Her current position involves sales and operations for the Greater Jacksonville area and she always considers the health of the water systems to be the most important area to cover with customers.

Katie began her career with us as a field tech three years ago, then moved to a position as Account Rep. During that time, she was trained in lab and field procedures.

Having learned the business from the ground up, she understands and can explain the process of restoring and maintaining lakes.

Katie was born in Jacksonville, Florida, but has moved around growing up.

Derek Byrnes

Service Manager & Regional Biologist

Jacksonville - B.A. in Biology, University of Northern Iowa. Four years' experience.

Derek went to college at the University of Northern Iowa where he earned a degree in Biology. He has been with the company for two years, starting as an Aquatic Technician.

His job at Aquatic Systems requires that he manage many responsibilities with aplomb. These include contacting customers, answering questions, and handling any service requests from them or the service staff.

Derek was born in San Antonio, Texas, and later his family moved to Fairfield, Iowa where a hard work ethic was needed working on a large farm. He loves working outside and his job here is a good fit for him. Derek enjoys helping customers find solutions to their lake problems and helping the techs when things break down. He is proud that the company meets his standards of hard work, and working to improve the environment.

40+ years in lake management throughout Florida. Aquatic Systems, a SOLitude Lake Management Company invests in research and development to understand the underlying causes of lake issues to find sustainable solutions.